Why?
by sym64
Summary: A senseless act of violence has devastating consequences.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Why?

**Rating:** T

**Disclaimer:** Last I checked I still didn't get any monetary gain from writing this stuff. I guess taking great joy from posting these little stories will be the only reward I'll get.

**Summary:** A senseless act of violence has devastating consequences.

**A/N:** This whole story came to me in a dream; all I had to do was write it down. ;-)

Again I want to thank Cokie for her amazing beta work. I couldn't do this without her. And more importantly, I wouldn't want to.

Even after all the yelling you did, I still love ya. :-)

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**Why? - Chapter 01**

Danny Williams looked at the flag covered casket; this was not how it should have ended. He knew that to his right were Kono, Chin and Grover, and he knew without even looking that their faces were grim, sad and angry.

Last he glanced at his left, to the empty space next to Catherine. As if feeling his look on her she turned her head and tried to smile through the sadness that hadn't left her since this horrible ordeal had started a few days ago.

Danny could still hear her laughter when Steve had finally come home after a long… and late meeting with the governor. They all had been at Steve and Catherine's place, celebrating catching a dangerous felon who had killed three people in the last 48 hour period. He wondered if he would hear that laughter again.

The team, including Grover and Max had raided the couple's freezer and fridge and they had just opened the last six-pack of Longboards when Steve had finally graced them with his presence.

_**Three days ago**_

Steve could hear the laughter coming from behind the back of his house even before he closed the truck's door. He sighed and shook his head. He should have known they would all come here to decompress and celebrate taking a dangerous man off the streets. It was not like he didn't want them to come and feel comfortable to spend their time with him and Catherine, but he was bone tired and had been looking forward to a quiet night alone with his girlfriend.

They hadn't had any time to themselves for what he thought were weeks. OK, it was only days, but he had really hoped for some Barry-White-time tonight. Or at least for some uninterrupted sleep next to Cath, something that also hadn't happened in the last few weeks. His sleeping pattern had gotten a bit disturbing lately, something he had to address soon or it might start to affect his work.

Steve looked up when he heard Grover's booming voice announcing the last six-pack of beer. _Great. Finally home, and no beer._ This day was getting better and better. First he and Chin had to chase their killer on foot through the container maze down at the harbor, then he had to attend the never-ending press conference and the 'aftershow' with the Governor, and now, to top it all off, he probably wouldn't even get a beer at his own house.

Steve sighed again as he walked into the front door. Laughter was still filtering through the open door to the lanai, he could clearly hear Catherine. He would recognize her laugh anywhere.

He kept his keys in his hand, knowing that he would need them again in a minute, and walked through the sparsely lit living room. He stopped in the doorway to the illuminated lanai and took in the sight. A smile formed on his face at seeing his team having such a good time. They deserved to enjoy their time off. They all had done a great job the last couple of days.

And he was very happy to see Grover becoming a friend not only to him but also to his team. They had had a rocky start, but now they worked really well together. Steve really liked the guy, and he had found that it was easy to talk to him. He respected Grover, and was glad to call him a friend.

"I hope there is a steak with my name on it?" Steve called into the night and laughed at the collected head turning. "What, no beer _**and**_ no steak?" Steve asked in mock anger, but with a smile on his face as he joined the group.

He was greeted with a sweet kiss from Cath and an apology from Danny. "Sorry, we were just discussin' who'd get mo' beer."

Steve laughed at his friend, "Well, obviously not you. Sounds like you've had one too many already."

"Nah, 'm good," Danny said but plopped back into his chair when he stood up too fast.

"Sure you are," Steve said still laughing.

"One of 'em must have been bad," Danny said grinning.

"I'm sure that's it. Keep at it guys, I'll just go and grab a couple more packs. Anything else we need?" Steve asked and looked at his girlfriend.

"No, it's all good. We'll start your steak. You get the beer."

"Alright," he said and bent down for another kiss. "I'll be back in a few. Don't burn my steak," he warned, pointing his finger at Chin who was just preparing more food to put on the grill.

"Hurry back, Steve, or I can't guarantee that juicy meat will still be here," Grover called over the table, swinging his fork.

"You better keep that fork away from my steak," Steve threatened back over his shoulder.

He still chuckled as he closed the truck's door and made his way to the small store just a few minutes from his home. "Mr. Kim's" had always had a good stash of cold six packs and all the other stuff one would need for an impromptu party.

Steve still remembered Mr. Kim senior from his childhood, the shop was still in their family, and Steve mostly bought his beer there. It was a bit more costly, but he liked to support the small shops.

He parked his truck in the small parking lot behind the shop and went into the back door. Like he had done thousands of times before. Steve thought two or three six-packs should do since his friends had been at it for a few hours already. He calculated their get-together wouldn't last longer than another hour or so.

He was on his way to the cooler that held the beer when he stopped in his tracks.

Three things happened at the same time. Steve saw the body on the floor, heard a popping sound from his right and felt the impact on his chest.

He looked down at the blood forming on his shirt. Steve's legs gave out and he went down to his knees, too shocked to realize what had just happened. He tried to lift his hands to stop the blood oozing out of the hole high up on the right side of his chest. Steve took a shuddering breath that resulted in a wet cough with frothy blood bubbling out of his mouth.

Steve fell forward and came to rest on his stomach with one arm outstretched and one by his side. Breathing was a struggle and he became aware that he was mortally wounded. He again coughed and more blood spew out of his mouth.

With the coughing came pain. Incredible pain in his chest and back. It took away what little breath he still had. Steve closed his eyes against the agony that had suddenly formed in his back. For a moment he wondered why the worst pain he had ever felt was in his back when he had been shot in his chest.

But soon that thought was of no importance anymore. All he could think of was Catherine. And who would be the one to make the notification. He hoped it would be a kind soul, and that his friends would be there for her. For her and his sister.

His girlfriend's smiling face was his last thought as he took his last breath. A calm settled over him, and he smiled, thinking of her laughter, of the time they had spent together.

And then suddenly it was all gone.

His body gave in to the trauma the bullet had caused as it tore through his lung and lodged itself in his spine. Once again, three things occurred simultaneously. Steve's heart stopped beating, the blood stopped flowing, and air stopped getting in his damaged lungs.

H50 - H50 - H50


	2. Chapter 2

_**I apologize to everyone who thought this would be another long story. Sorry, but the dream was not that long.**_** ;-) ****This**_** is already the last chapter. Besides it was sad enough as it is.**_

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**Why? - Chapter 02**

Catherine looked at her watch for the third time. "What's taking him so long?" She asked into the round. "I'll call him," she said and grabbed her phone from the table.

"Maybe "Kim's" ran out of beer and he had to go to the store," Chin suggested.

"He would have called. It's been forty five minutes," Cath answered as she listened to the call going to voicemail. "He's not picking up."

"Hello?" They all turned when they heard Duke coming around the corner.

"Duke, what's going on?" Chin asked and stepped next to Catherine.

"Catherine… there was a robbery at Kim's," Duke told them after he had greeted the group.

"Where's Steve?" She asked even though Cath already knew that something must have happened. Why else would Duke be here?

"Steve walked into the store from the backdoor parking lot. He was just barely in the door, when… I am so sorry, Catherine. He was shot."

"How bad is it?" Danny, who had instantly sobered, asked.

"The EMTs were there just minutes after the shooting, they tried all they could on the scene… but they were still trying to revive him when they left for the hospital..."

"What?" Catherine whispered and held on to Chin.

"They weren't giving up, but they couldn't restart his heart. They took him to Queens, and he was rushed into surgery. I'm sorry, I don't have any more information than that," Duke regretfully informed them.

"I need to go to the hospital," Catherine announced, heading into the house for her keys.

"Hold on, Cath," Chin said, reaching for her arm. "You aren't driving. Duke can you…"

"Of course, come on. Danny are you coming, too?"

"Yeah," Danny quietly answered and looked at Chin. "Can you go to the scene?"

"Absolutely, we will all go, Danny. Grover, you with us?"

"Of course," the big man said and hugged Cath. "Hang in there," he whispered.

Kono also hugged her friend before following Chin and Grover. "We'll be there as soon as we can," she promised. "Max, want to ride with me?"

"Yes," he replied. "While I am not on duty, perhaps I can be of some assistance."

"Actually, Dr. Benton is on the scene, Max. You may want to help him," Duke informed their ME.

"I will. Ready when you are, Kono."

"Catherine, do you need to take anything with you?" Duke asked.

"Uh, yeah," she replied, heading into the house. "I've got my phone but I need to get my wallet."

"I'll lock up the house," Danny said. "Meet you at the car, Duke."

No words were spoken on the way to the hospital. The quiet felt very strange, but neither Cath nor Danny could wrap their head around the fact that their friend might already be dead.

H50 - H50 - H50

_**3 hours later, surgical waiting area, Queens Medical Center**_

"Are you telling me some punk shot Steve and Kim's son for a fucking pack of cigarettes?" Danny asked in outrage about what he had just heard from Chin.

"Yeah, he's 19 and was high on speed. They arrested him half an hour ago," Kono told them with disgust in her voice. "Any news on Steve?"

"No, he's still in surgery," Catherine answered. "I mean, that's good, right? That means he's still alive."

"Yeah," Danny agreed, trying to keep the hope up.

They all turned when a doctor came through the door and headed straight for them. "Are you here for Commander McGarrett?"

"Yes," Catherine answered for all of them. "I'm his next of kin and we are his family," Cath said and motioned to the small group. "How is Steve?"

"Let's sit over there," the doctor said and motioned to a group of chairs in the corner.

They all settled in and looked at the man in the light blue scrubs.

"My name is Dr. Phillip Young, I operated on the commander," Young began and paused for a moment. "When he was brought in he was in full cardiac arrest. We were able to restart his heart, but he coded three more times during surgery. He lost a lot of blood, and we can't say at the moment if there is any brain damage due to insufficient air supply during the cardiac arrest."

"But he made it through surgery?" Danny asked.

"It was touch and go, but yes. The bullet did a lot of damage to his right lung," the surgeon continued. "It went sideways through the lung tissue and was stopped by the sixth thoracic vertebrae, cracking it in the process. It barely missed all major arteries and the heart, which is a miracle in itself."

"It fractured his spine?" Grover asked.

"Not quite. The bullet hit the bone, cracked it, but didn't shatter it or injured the spinal cord itself. However, there is a lot of swelling at the moment. Commander McGarrett is not breathing on his own, nor does he show any reflexes below the level of injury."

"But he is alive," Cath said with conviction. "He has a chance to make it."

"I won't sugar coat his condition in any way. We have to wait and see. If he can make it through the next 72 hours he has a chance to survive."

"Can we see him?" Catherine asked.

"He will be settled in the ICU shortly, you can see him then," the doctor kindly said. "You can go wait on the third floor if you wish. Someone will let you know when he's ready."

H50 - H50 - H50

Catherine looked down at the man she loved. When she had come into the ICU cubicle a few minutes ago she had been just as shocked as Danny at what they saw.

Steve lay slightly elevated in a bed and looked all but dead. A tube went down his throat and the ventilator pushed air into his lungs. IV lines went into a port at his clavicle and his left arm. Another thicker tube came out of his heavily bandaged chest, and they could see another tube leading to a urine collection bag.

His legs were exposed and rested elevated in specially formed cushions to keep the feet and legs at certain angles. They could have lived with all that, but what did them in was the neck brace that was connected to a contraption that went down to his belly and kept Steve's upper body immobile to protect his injured spine. They learned later that Steve would only need that until he would be stable enough for them to fix the fractured bone in another operation.

"Steve," Catherine choked out as she sat down next to his bed and gently took his slack right hand. "We're here, you're not alone."

"Hey, Buddy," Cath heard Danny say.

"You can both stay for a few minutes, but then you'll have to leave," Dr. Young, who had accompanied them to the ICU, said.

"Can't I stay with him?" Catherine was not willing to leave her friend alone.

"Commander McGarrett is heavily sedated, he won't know if you're here or not," Young quickly replied.

"But I'll know if I'm here or not. Please, I won't be in the way. I promise."

"We allow for visits, but it's against protocol for visitors to stay for longer than a few minutes," Young said and then paused obviously thinking it over. "OK, one of you can stay. BUT you have to leave when we say so. Understood?"

"Yes, absolutely. Thank you," Cath told him, grateful to be allowed to stay by Steve's side.

Catherine watched the doctor leave and turned to Danny, "This is not how it's supposed to be, Danny," she told him, her fear and anger showing in her voice. "Steve fought in war, he was on dangerous SEAL missions for ten years. He has faced dangerous situations with Five-0 and is now gunned down by some kid?"

"Catherine… I don't know what to say… I feel like this is our fault…"

"What?" Cath quickly said and looked at Danny. "Why do you say that? Steve was just at the wrong place at the wrong time. Danny, it's not Steve's or our fault."

"We drank all the beer…"

"Don't be ridiculous," Cath called out.

"If I hadn't gotten drunk, there would have been no need for Steve to leave, he would have…"

"Danny! Stop that. Steve would not want to blame you or anyone of us for what happened. Blame that kid," Cath said with tears in her eyes.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry… I guess I'm more drunk than I thought," Danny admitted. He had sobered when he had learned about his best friend getting shot, but that didn't change the fact that there was a lot of alcohol running through his system right now. A fact that he was aware of, and the only reason why he had not headed over to HPD to take a look at the person who tried to kill his best friend. He wouldn't risk doing something stupid. He would never forgive himself if that SOB walked because of him.

"It's OK, Danny. I am so angry, but Steve needs us right now, more than ever before. We have to be strong for him. We have to fight for him. Can you do that?"

"We all will. And that stubborn SOB better be prepared for us to not let him go like that," Danny said with conviction. "I'll go and get you a change of clothes and some other stuff you might need, OK?"

"Danny, I'm good for now. Go home, get some sleep. I have the feeling we have some tough days ahead of us," Catherine told him.

"How can you be so rational and calm?"

Catherine only snorted at that. "I'm anything but calm, Danny. But if I gave in to it, I would be a sobbing mess, and that wouldn't help anyone," Catherine said but couldn't keep the tears from flowing down her cheeks.

"OK, I'll go and tell the others they can come see Steve later today," Danny said and Cath knew he did it to give her some time alone with her friend and to come to grips with the situation.

Something Cath knew would be a while before any of them would be able to understand what had really happened.

H50 - H50 - H50

"Catherine, are you ready?" Danny asked as he saw his best friend's lover slowly walking down the stairs.

"I can't do this, Danny. I just can't."

"I know it is hard, but you need to be there for Steve. Please come with us," Danny pleaded. "He deserves for all of us to be there today."

"Yeah, you're right. Let's go."

Danny smiled what he hoped was encouragingly at her. There hadn't been much reason to smile the last few days, and he certainly didn't feel like smiling on this day. Today they would put a real hero to rest.

The drive to the cemetery was almost as quiet as the one they took to the hospital three days ago. When they reached their destination they were amazed how many people had gathered to honor the fallen man.

There were HPD officers and several people from the military. Many familiar faces, but also a lot they had never seen before. They all came to honor a man who had risked his life countless times, one who had served his country with pride. And who had been killed in a senseless way that no one had come to terms with yet.

They saw Mr. Kim surrounded by his family and made their way over to greet them.

"Mr. Kim, I am so very sorry for your loss," Catherine said and shook the older man's hand.

"Thank you. It means a lot to our family that you all came today."

"Please let us know if we can do anything for you," Danny added.

"Thank you. How is Steve doing?" Kim asked.

"No change, but he's still hanging in there," Catherine told him, trying to bravely smile.

"Good, Kim nodded. "That young man has a lot to live for," he said and looked at McGarrett's friends who had all come to honor his murdered son.

"That he does, and we have every intention telling him that as soon as he wakes up," Danny assured him. "You know he would be here if he could."

"I know he would. He was always a good kid. That is what my father always told me," Kim said and looked over to his father. "It is the hardest on him, he hasn't spoken a word since John was killed. I think he… I'm sorry, I'm rambling about while your friend is still critically injured. I'm so sorry he got hurt in our…"

"Please, Mr. Kim, none of this was your fault. And we will help you in any way we can, please just let us know how," Catherine interrupted and hugged him before she and Danny moved over to their dedicated places to take part in Corporal John Kim's funeral.

H50 - H50 - H50

_**Queens Medical Center - ICU - late afternoon the same day**_

Catherine Rollins walked into the ICU still wearing her black dress from the funeral. She stopped in her tracks, shocked at the sight before her. "What happened?" She asked and turned to the smiling nurse who had just changed a bag of fluid on the IV stand.

"The commander started spontaneous breathing about two hours ago. The ventilator was disconnected half an hour ago. His breathing is good. Dr. Young will be back to check on him again in a few minutes," Nurse Lee told her still smiling.

Cath could only nod at that, she was too fascinated watching Steve breathe without the terrible tube down his throat and the sound the respirator had made every few seconds for the last three days.

Now he only sported a nasal cannula that provided oxygen, but his breathing was regular and as she thought completely normal. This was the first and only improvement they had seen since Steve had been settled in the ICU.

They had lowered the sedation twenty-four hours after the surgery, but Steve had shown no signs of waking. He had not reacted to any stimuli and he had had no reflexes below the injury. Even above his injury it appeared the reflexes had been compromised.

The specialist had assured them that the paralysis would most likely be temporary, just as long as the swelling was present. And that they were doing everything in their power to reduce it. They had put a catheter into his spine with a drip of medication that should help reduce the swelling but so far, the doctors hadn't seen any improvement.

For the last three days Steve had not been able to breathe unaided, but doing so now must mean the pressure on the nerves had lessened. At least that is what Catherine hoped was the case.

She almost jumped out of her skin when Steve moved his left foot. "Oh my God," she called out and finally left her place at the end of his bed and rushed to sit next to him. As she had done the last three days, she picked up his hand. "Steve? Steve, can you hear me? Please squeeze my hand if you can."

Of course, there was no reaction. Yet.

H50 - H50 - H50

His back hurt, and he wondered why he couldn't move into a more comfortable position. But somehow he was pinned down by something on his chest. Come to think of it, why the heck couldn't he move his head?

_Think, Steve. What's the last you remember?_ _Danny being drunk and they had run out of beer._ After that his memory was kind of hazy. He remembered hearing Catherine laughing about something, but he had no idea about what. Oh, and he clearly remembered pain in his back. Yeah, that was a pretty clear memory.

Steve involuntarily groaned thinking about the intense pain in his back. What he was feeling now was just a mild discomfort compared to that pain.

"Steve?"

"Hmm." Steve tried to turn his head towards the voice, but was unable to do so. Which frustrated him and that resulted in an increased heart rate.

"Steve, it's OK, don't try to move. You will be fine. Just lie still," the voice said.

He was pretty sure it was Catherine's voice, he knew it was her hand holding his, so he assumed she was also the one talking to him. _Open your eyes, genius, and take a look._

Steve struggled to open his eyes, but they very stubbornly refused to open.

"Commander, can you open your eyes?" Another louder voice asked.

_Trying_. He doubled his effort and was rewarded with some blurry images when he finally succeeded.

"Wha' happ'?" Steve mumbled.

"Do you remember getting shot, Commander?"

"Huh?" He had no idea what that man was talking about. Who the hell was he anyway, and where did Cath go to. "Cath?" Steve weakly called out.

And suddenly she was there in his line of vision, softly lying her hand on his forehead, bending down and giving him a gentle kiss. "I've missed you," she whispered.

"Where I've been?" Steve asked in confusion that only got worse when Cath softly laughed at him.

He loved hearing her laughter. It always made everything better, and even though he had no idea what had happened, he knew his girlfriend would be there and in the end everything would be alright.

H50 - H50 - H50

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_**Did you really think I'd kill Steve? Shaking my head here, but doing so with an evil grin.**_

_**OK, I'll make you a deal. Cokie said this story should have at least one more part with Steve's recovery. I would be willing to do that… IF there was any demand for that. Let's say if forty people would want to read that, I'll post an epilogue. So, let me know. And no, it's not written yet and won't be posted without a serious demand. **_


End file.
